Gallup: Support for Gay Marriage Hits Record High

The support for gay marriage among Americans has reached an all-time high at 55 percent, a new poll shows.

The Gallup survey, released Wednesday, showed a two percentage point jump on the 2013 figure and is the highest since the polling firm started keeping track of questions involving same-sex unions in 1996.

The respondents were asked, "Do you think marriage between same-sex couples should or should not be recognized by the law, with the same rights as traditional marriages?"

The survey also revealed that nearly 8 in 10 young adults age 18-29, a record 78 percent, are in favor of gay marriages, an 8 percent surge over 2013 results.

A little more than 2 of every 5 Americans in the 65-and-older age bracket, 42 percent, said they support same-sex marriages, which was the lowest number for any age group but a slight 1-point increase from last year.

There were noticeable differences, however, on support for gay unions based on party and lines.

Nearly 3 out of 4 Democrats, 74 percent, backed them, along with 82 percent of those who identified themselves as liberals. But only 30 percent of Republicans, and 31 percent of those who called themselves conservatives, supported same-sex marriages.

The poll of 1,028 adults was conducted May 8-11 by phone and has a margin of error of plus or minus 5 percentage points.
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